h the dark
tunnel to the rockfall. There was still plenty of dust in the air, but
it was bearable.

Scotty flashed his light on the timbers, then on the rockslide. One pair
of uprights arose from the sloping pile of rock to a sound crosspiece.

Both boys knew what that meant. Rick put it into words. "If that's the
set of timbers nearest to the ones that were bad, it means at least ten
feet of rock on this side, and probably the same or even more on the
other. A total of twenty feet of rock."

Scotty grunted. "One thing is for sure. We won't dig our own way out for
a few days. I'm not even sure we can. We might collapse from lack of
water if we try working real hard."

"But we can't wait for help from the outside," Rick pointed out. "We can
at least work while we still have our health."

"Can you work in the darkness?"

"I suppose we'll have to. The lights won't last long."

"Then let's get to it."

They retreated to an alcove and put their shirts in a safe place, then
went to work in their T shirts. Lugging rocks would work up a sweat, and
it was chilly underground. The shirts were for use during rest periods.

"Let's see how it goes," Scotty invited, and turned off his light.

Rick groped for a rock and found a good-sized one. He carried it back
and promptly bumped into a wall and dropped it. Keeping a straight line
was going to be a problem. He groped for the rock and found it again,
but this time he tucked it under one arm, using the opposite hand to
guide him along the wall.

"I'm on the right-hand wall," he told Scotty. "I'll return along the
left-hand wall."

"Good system," Scotty approved.

It was, too. They passed each other in the dark and Rick was pleased,
until he tripped on a rock and stumbled into the pile.

"We're going to have to count paces," he said ruefully as he nursed a
bruised knee. "Say twenty paces up and twenty paces back."

"Better make it twice that," Scotty replied. "We can't pile all the
rocks in one place. We'll have to spread them out."

"Forty it is," Rick agreed, and found another rock.

The work went on, gradually assuming the proportions of a dream--or a
nightmare. Pick up a rock, tote it forty paces, drop it. Then
thirty-five paces as the passageway got cluttered. Now and then they had
to join forces to lug a particularly big piece.

Rick's watch showed him that two hours had gone by. "Let's take a
break," he suggested.

"Okay."

Scotty turned on his light. Th